In communication networks, communication resources used for communication, such as time slots or frequency channels, are usually shared by a number of devices. In order to coordinate an access of the number of devices on the communication resources, medium access control (MAC) mechanisms can be applied. Common mechanisms for MAC are e.g. carrier sense multiple access with collision avoidance (CSMA/CA) or carrier sense multiple access with collision detection (CSMA/CD). Data to be communicated can be embedded in a frame structure adapted to the employed MAC mechanism.
In CSMA/CA, a carrier sensing scheme is used, where the number of devices can attempt to avoid collisions by transmitting only when the communication resource is sensed to be idle. In CSMA/CD, a carrier sensing scheme is used, where a device can detect collisions while transmitting data, can stop transmitting the data, and can wait for a time interval before resending the data.
Newly emerging applications, e.g. vehicle-to-X (V2X) communications and device-to-device (D2D) communications, can pose challenges with regard to providing a low latency, a high reliability, a high data rate, and an extensive connectivity within the communication networks. Moreover, data having different priorities may be communicated within the communication networks. Common MAC mechanisms in conjunction with common frame structures, however, are usually not capable of providing these functionalities concurrently and can suffer from a lack of flexibility and scalability.
In G. Fodor et al., “Design Aspects of Network Assisted Device-to-Device Communications,” IEEE Communications Magazine, May 2011, a device-to-device communication network is described.